


Thank God for Payphones

by romanticizedtaboos



Series: Whump Klaus [2]
Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Angst, Canon Drug Addiction, Drug Addiction, Graphic Depictions of Illness, Hurt/Comfort, Implied Rape/Non-con, Klaus needs a hug, NSFW, PTSD, Panic Attacks, Read at Your Own Risk, Reginald Hargreeves' A+ Parenting, Sassy Ben Hargreeves, Sequel, Sick Klaus Hargreeves, Sickfic, Soft Diego Hargreeves, Whump Klaus Hargreeves, Withdrawal, dont worry this will have a happy ending!, emetophobia warning, multiple POVs, not beta’d we die like ben, referenced rape/non-con
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-12
Updated: 2020-07-20
Packaged: 2021-03-03 02:09:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,857
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24137140
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/romanticizedtaboos/pseuds/romanticizedtaboos
Summary: (A sequel to TheoneR1ng’s fic, ‘Save Me From Myself, picking up directly where it left off)Diego nearly broke when he saw Klaus. He was slumped over in a payphone, his body completely covered in burns, abrasions and cuts. And those were just the injuries Diego could see. He didn't even want to think about the ones under his clothes.
Relationships: Ben Hargreeves & Diego Hargreeves & Klaus Hargreeves, Ben Hargreeves & Klaus Hargreeves, Diego Hargreeves & Eudora Patch, Diego Hargreeves & Klaus Hargreeves
Series: Whump Klaus [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1789648
Comments: 24
Kudos: 235





	1. You Deserve So Much More

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by ['Save Me From Myself'](https://archiveofourown.org/works/18379304) by [NotYourGrandparentsPenPal](https://archiveofourown.org/users/NotYourGrandparentsPenPal/pseuds/NotYourGrandparentsPenPal). 



> Can be read standalone but i highly encourage you to read TheoneR1ng’s fic before this one. Will be updated as often as I write the chapters. I do not intend for this to be a short fic or oneshot
> 
> go to my tumblr @robbiecasmin for updates on this fic!

Diego nearly broke when he saw Klaus. He was slumped over in a payphone, his body completely covered in burns, abrasions and cuts. And those were just the injuries Diego could see. He didn't even want to think about the ones under his clothes.   
He walked over to Klaus’ limp body and checked for a pulse. He just about cried from relief when he found one. ”Oh God. Klaus thank fuck. Oh my God.” He allowed a few tears to drip down his face before wiping them away and picking up Klaus.   
He was light. Too light. Diego recalled him saying that he was 6’ one day whilst bragging about how he was the second tallest of their siblings. He was still tall and lanky but so frail. He couldn't weigh more than 130 lbs with how easy it was for Diego to carry him over to his shitty ”straight guy car” as Klaus had so affectionately deemed it the first time he saw it. Diego had to choke back a sob thinking about that day. It was when Klaus was still Klaus. Before the endless trips back and forth to rehab he’d taken in that very car. So many hospital trips, overdoses, rehab stays and brief jail stints later and here he was. Something had finally broken what was left of his brother. He wanted to kill them. He will kill them.   
His brother didn't even stir as he turned on the engine and started to drive away from the payphone towards his ”apartment” -if you could even call the tiny boiler room he lived in that. He wondered how long it had been since his brother had slept. Properly slept, in a bed, without the fear of getting killed in an alley or freezing to death on a bench. Diego wasn't sure but he’d bet that Klaus wasn't even dreaming. Usually he would've woken up by now or at least started to stir as the nightmares started. Diego couldn't remember a single night where Klaus hadn't woken up screaming within the first hour of being asleep. Sometimes they would last the whole night, coming back again and again until he decided to just not sleep for the next couple nights. He doesn't think he'll ever be able to get the soft sobbing of Klaus after a nightmare out of his head. It happened far too often.   
Right now he almost looked peaceful. If you could ignore the injuries and traumas littering his pale, sweat-soaked skin.   
He pulled into the back of the gym he lived in and got out of the car as quickly as possible, rushing over to Klaus’ side. He pulled him into his arms once again, being as gentle with his weak body as humanely possible. Then they went inside. 

☏

When Klaus woke up his head felt like it might actually explode. His entire body ached worse than he even knew was possible and he felt like his skin had been torn off, lit on fire, and then put back on again. His mouth tasted like sour milk and stale cigarettes, with some hints of alcohol. Maybe vodka? Not to mention the sound of at least 20 ghosts screaming at the top of their damn lungs, which really wasn't doing much to help with his headache.   
He opened his eyes to see a dark figure standing over him.   
”No no no no no, ” he was shaking and muttering under his breath. He frantically moved back towards the wall behind him trying to get away from the man. This can't be happening. Not again. ”No no no. Stop please, please, ” he was silently crying, pleading for the man to not hurt him. Not again. No not again.   
”Klaus, Klaus you're safe.”   
Ben?  
”Ben?”  
”Klaus you're at Diego’s. Remember, you called him last night?”  
He slowly looked up to see an utterly horrified looking Diego.   
”Diego?” His voice was still small and he couldn't stop trembling.   
”Yeah. Yeah buddy it's me. You're okay, you're safe.”  
Klaus slowly came closer to Diego until he was sitting right in front of him.   
”You've been asleep for a while. You woke up a couple times but fell right back asleep after.” Diego's voice sounded on edge. Like he was figuring out how to ask Klaus what happened without scaring him off.   
”Oh. Right. What time is it?”  
” 4 pm. I figured it was best to just let you sleep. You got up to puke a couple times too. Withdrawal?” Oh, so that's why his mouth tasted so terrible.   
”Yeah I think.”  
”Do you mind if I clean some of those cuts? Just so they don't get infected. You've been sweating a lot and it's been like 12 hours.”  
Klaus looked down at himself. It seemed like at some point either him or Diego had peeled off his shirt and pants. Leaving him just in worn black socks and blood stained boxers. He remembers what had happened last night as he looks down at his grotesque body. He's covered in a number of cuts, marks, bruises and burns. He wished he was high.   
”Klaus?”   
”Oh, yeah, sure go ahead, brother dearest.“ He let out a heavy sigh. “I don't think they can get much worse at this point.” He lets out a weak little laugh at that but it doesn't sound right. It's too on edge. Like he's a second away from bursting into a million tears or crumbling like an old building when meeting dynamite.   
His brother gives him a sad smile and walks over to a cupboard above his sink. He brings over a big, white first aid kit, some paper towel and a water bottle. Klaus flinches when he sits on the chair next to the bed, the sound being a bit too loud for his liking. 

☏

Diego starts with the bruises and cuts on his brother's arms. There aren't as many there. Just some bloody abrasions on his wrists and a few cuts on his elbows along with some fresh track marks that definitely hadn't been cleaned -before or after they were made.   
Klaus doesn't make a sound. Just flinching slightly every now and again, though Diego has a feeling it's not from the pain but whatever he's seeing around the room right now.   
After his arms are cleaned and bandaged to the best of Diego's ability he decides to move onto his back.   
”Can you turn around for me please?” He tries to sound as gentle as possible, knowing that Klaus probably couldn't handle anything but, right now.   
”Uhuh, ” he mutters as he carefully fixes his position to expose his aching back.   
”Oh God.” Diego doesn't mean to say that out loud but it just slips out as he finally gets a good look at the slashes across his brother’s back.   
”Belt.”  
”What?”   
”He used a belt.” Klaus spoke with no emotion despite the tears continuously streaming down his face.   
”Oh. Okay.” He felt moisture at his eyes. What the fuck was he supposed to say? What the fuck could he say? Klaus was always the talker, not him. Klaus was the one to crack a joke or say something inappropriate when things were serious to lighten the mood. But right now there was nothing to lighten the mood. He doubted even old Klaus could think of something to say right now. How the fuck is he supposed to know what to say?  
He continued cleaning and bandaging Klaus as they fell into an uncomfortable silence. He could hear Klaus softly sobbing as he wiped antiseptic cream on burns and tried to forget how his brother had gotten them. It was hard to convince yourself that cigarette burns were in fact not from cigarettes but it was even harder to face that they were so he went with the former.  
When he'd finished with all of the visible injuries he put down the kit and climbed up onto the bed beside Klaus. He wished someone could tell him what to say. What the fuck was he supposed to say right now? He couldn't figure out how to speak so instead he just sat and hoped Klaus understood. He always was the most understanding of them. Even more than Ben or Allison. He prayed to God he hadn't lost that too. 

☏

Klaus sat next to his brother. They were both crying. He didn't know why he was crying. He felt nothing. Absolutely nothing. Yet he couldn't get the tears to stop. They just kept coming. And he let them.   
After what felt like hours but had to be closer to 10 minutes, Klaus decided to speak since Diego clearly wasn't.   
”I'm sorry.” His tone said otherwise but he truly meant it. It was the most sincere apology he’d ever given. To anyone. He hoped Diego knew that.   
”What for?” His brother spoke softly and for that he was eternally grateful. He wasn't sure he could handle another loud voice ever again.   
”Being helpless. You keep trying to help and I just keep getting myself into this shit again. I'm sorry, ” his voice broke at the last word and he couldn't help but feel pathetic. Always the damsel.   
”Klaus, when I say this I need you to really listen to me, okay? I need you to believe me when I say this wasn't your fault. I know it feels like it is but you didn't ask for this, okay.” Klaus looked up at Diego and saw the tears in his eyes fall faster as he looked Klaus in the eyes. He couldn't help but feel proud as Diego hadn't stuttered one bit even as he sobbed.   
He really wanted to believe Diego but he couldn't stop his guilt from seeping in, under his skin and into his veins. It was his fault. He'd gotten himself into the situation. If he wasn't Klaus this never would've happened. Whether he asked for it or not he couldn't deny that it was his fault.   
”Diego stop lying, ” he hated how broken he sounded. He was so exhausted and he didn't want to argue with Diego right now.  
”No. No, Klaus you're gonna listen to me, okay? You did not ask for this. You did not want this. You did not know this was going to happen. You didn't choose for this to happen. I'm done with you thinking you deserve this shit, cause you don't. You don't. So d-don’t fucking t-tell me you d-do. You deserve better!” 

☏

Diego didn't mean to yell. He silently cursed at himself when Klaus visibly flinched away from him. He was just angry and he couldn't stop stuttering and Klaus needed to hear that he mattered. God knows no one ever treated him like he did. Diego was sure he’d never been told once in his life that he actually did, but it was clear to Diego that he did. Klaus mattered so much. To him if nothing else.   
Klaus looked at him like he had two heads. Was this really such a foreign concept to him? Had no one ever taught him that he didn't deserve to be punished? He supposed not, given that their father specifically taught them that they did deserve to be punished. Sometimes for no reason it seemed. Diego looked at him directly in the eyes, pleading for Klaus to look back at him and understand. Understand how much he meant to people. How much he really did matter. At this point Diego didn’t care if he ever got sober, he just couldn’t let him give up yet. Klaus deserved so much more.   
When Klaus nodded, Diego let out a breath he didn’t realize he had been holding. Not that it mattered much either way heh. He didn’t think Klaus actually believed him yet but it was nice to see him acknowledge it without arguing Diego. It was something. He looked back at Klaus and realized he was shivering. Shit.   
”Hey do you want a sweater and some pants? You ripped your clothes off sometime this morning saying that you were melting.”

☏

Klaus hadn’t realized he was shivering until Diego asked him if he wanted some clothes. He still felt like he was sunbathing on Mercury.   
”Oh, um actually I still feel like I’m melting, to be honest.”  
”Shit!”  
“What?”  
Ben gave Klaus a look that said ‘you absolute dumbass’.   
”Klaus, you’re going through withdrawal, you have a fever, ”why did Ben always have to be so condescending?  
While Diego frantically searched his apartment for a thermometer while muttering a mantra of ’shit’ and ‘fuck’ under his breath, Klaus suddenly felt like he was going to die of hypothermia. His skin was ice but he had a molten lava core. He covered himself in all of the blankets on the bed, teeth chattering as if he’d just taken a dip while ice fishing. Diego walked over to Klaus with the thermometer in his hand, commanding Klaus to put it under his tongue. When it beeped Diego took it out and looked at it. 

☏

”Shit.”  
”What is it?”  
”Klaus, you have a fever of 104. Fuck!”  
”Is that bad?”  
”What the fuck? Of course it’s bad! If it keeps rising you could literally fucking die, Klaus!”  
”Oopsie, ” Klaus sniggered. Of course now is when he decides to go back to his regular Klaus bullshit. Nice to know he isn’t completely gone.   
“Fuck, Klaus!”  
”Diego, D-, ” Klaus barely managed to lean over the bed to puke into the trashcan Diego had left for him. Diego cringed as he sat down beside the sick man to rub circles on his back.   
”You’re okay. You’re okay, bud. Just breathe.” He talked Klaus through the episode until he was dry heaving. It’s not like the guy had much to throw up in the first place aside from bile and a bit of water. This wasn’t a new occurrence; Diego had lost count of the times he’d talked Klaus through withdrawal, the flu, mild overdoses, bad trips, and just about any other kind of sickness you can imagine.   
He couldn’t imagine the amount of pain Klaus was in right now with all of the shit from the night before on top of the withdrawal. He tried his best to not be too harsh on him, no matter how hard that may be.   
After getting a bag of frozen veggies from his freezer and putting the remaining water from the bottle he brought over earlier in a glass, Diego made his way across the room once again to Klaus. He made Klaus drink the water and then put the frozen vegetable medley on his poor brother’s burning forehead. Klaus audibly sighed.   
While he looked relieved at first glance, the expression in Klaus’ eyes was so clearly full of pain. Physical and not. He looked like he was on the brink of crying again but Diego assumed he must be too dehydrated with the sweating and retching he’d been doing for the last however many hours. All he wanted was for his brother to not be in pain. Was that really too much to ask? He was ashamed to admit he was surprised that Klaus was even still at his place, going through withdrawal, when he could so easily go out and make the pain stop. He must’ve finally hit rock bottom. Diego just wished that this hadn’t been the thing to finally get Klaus to change. Why did it have to get to this point?  
Diego was snapped out of his thought by the sound of Klaus moaning and sobbing. Fuck. He just wanted to make the pain stop. It hurt him to see any of his siblings in pain. He was pretty sure a part of him had died with Five and Ben. His father had always made empathy out to be a weakness but in reality, it was the exact opposite. He would’ve known that if he had any, Diego guesses.   
”What is it Klaus? Talk to me, ” he looked Klaus over again but he looked the same as before. He wasn’t sure if that was good or bad.   
”Hurts.” Klaus was essentially whining at this point, gripping at his stomach and writhing around in the bed.   
”Where? You gotta tell me where, bud.”   
”Everywhere.” He felt a pang in his heart as Klaus said that. Klaus should be at a hospital right now, though knowing Klaus’ history, Diego concluded that a hospital would be the worst possible place for Klaus to be right now. Diego didn’t know what to do. He didn’t really have friends; Eudora and him had ended months ago; he wasn’t really on speaking terms with Vanya since that damn book; Luther is on the moon and even if he wasn’t, wouldn’t give a damn about helping Klaus or Diego; and Allison was in LA, living her best life.   
He checked the clock on his wall. It was just past 5 pm so Eudora would have just gotten off her shift for today. Fuck, he really didn’t wanna do this. She would know what to do though. He went to the phone and dialed her number. He hoped she would forgive him 

☏

”Diego.” Eudora was unimpressed, as she usually felt when talking to the self-proclaimed ”vigilante”.  
”Patch! Thank God.”  
He sounded frantic, and that was concerning. Diego was usually full of sarcastic quips, or flirty insults but right now he sounded… scared. She wasn’t sure if she’d ever heard him like this before.   
”I know you probably don’t wanna listen to me right now cause you just got off work and you don’t like dealing with this shit but I need help.” Wow, she definetly never heard Diego like this before.   
”Wow, really? The fearless Diego Hargreeves needs my help? I never thought I’d see the day?”  
”Eudora, please.” She heard him sniffle and that was when she knew something was really wrong. She had known Diego since they were 19, nearly 10 years, and she had never heard him cry. Punch walls? Yes. Get shitfaced? Sure. Yell at waiters? Definitely. But she had never heard him cry. Something was really wrong.  
”Shit, okay, I’ll be over in a minute.”  
”Thank you. Seriously I owe you for-fucking-ever.”  
”I'll hold you to it.”

☏

Diego paced around the room until he heard a knock at the door. Finally.   
”Open!” He calls. She rushes in the room as Klaus flinches.   
”Okay Diego what the fuck is happen-, ” she gets cut off my the sight of Klaus putting his hands over his ears at the sound of a new voice. God, he probably thinks she’s a ghost.   
”Who’s that and what the fuck happened to him?” Diego pulls Patch into the hall to answer.   
”That’s my brother.” Her mouth falls open as her expression changes from confusion to concern.   
”What the fuck happened to him.” Diego feels the tears come back and as much as he tries to will them away he can’t stop it. He really never thought he’d cry in front of Patch. Never say never, huh.   
”I picked him up at 4 am this morning after he called me from a payphone and passed out in the telephone booth. I think he got raped. At the very least he got beaten within an inch of his fucking life. I can’t take him to the hospital because he’ll freak out like he usually does -because of all the ghosts- and he’ll just run away before anyone can properly help him. I think he was sober when he got hurt and he’s going through withdrawal and his temperature is super fucking high and I’m freaking out right now!” He let out another sob as he ran his hands through his hair. ”I don’t know what to do and it's not like my family would help him, they think he deserves to die! That’s what Luther fucking told me! I’m the only one left to care about him and I don’t even know how! I don’t know what to do anymore.”  
Patch just looked at him with a shocked look on her face. Her face quickly morphed into her detective's face though, the one she has when she’s working on a case  
”First you need to get him to drink some water and put him in an ice bath. We have to bring him to my apartment cause you don’t have a tub. Then once he’s feeling better we’re gonna ask him what happened. Okay?”  
Diego couldn’t get out any words past his heavy sobs so he just nodded. With that, they went back to get Klaus. 

End of Chapter 1


	2. I Think I Might

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is the worst he’s ever seen Klaus, Ben thinks. And he’s seen Klaus bad. Really, really bad. Right now Klaus was writhing around on Diego’s bed, a constant battle between melting and freezing. Ben was sitting at the end of the bed trying to coach Klaus through the pain but it didn’t seem to be doing anything. He wasn’t even sure if his brother could hear him right now over all of Diego’s ghosts, screaming and weeping for Klaus to save them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a bit lighter but still a lot of angst. Next chapter will be darker but hopefully it'll go up from there! If you want to know when this gets updated then you can follow my Tumblr @robbiecasmin sorry for the lack of Ben but hopefully I'll figure out how to include him a bit more soon!

This is the worst he’s ever seen Klaus, Ben thinks. And he’s seen Klaus bad. Really, really bad. Right now Klaus was writhing around on Diego’s bed, a constant battle between melting and freezing. Ben was sitting at the end of the bed trying to coach Klaus through the pain but it didn’t seem to be doing anything. He wasn’t even sure if his brother could hear him right now over all of Diego’s ghosts, screaming and weeping for Klaus to save them.  
”Klaus, I know it’s really bad right now, and I can’t even begin to imagine what you’re feeling, but I’m here. And Diego is here. And all of this terrible shit that’s happening is only temporary. I know it doesn’t feel like that, but you’ll get through it.”  
”Shut up, Ben!” Klaus sobbed. ”You have no fucking idea!” Ben was pretty sure Klaus was trying to yell, but his hoarse throat and sobs wouldn’t allow it so it came out weak and was followed with a cough that sounded like he’d lost a lung.  
”You’re right. I have no idea. But I do know that doing any of this would be a hell of a lot worse if you were alone so you are not going to push me or Diego away right now. You’re sick and you’re hurting but you’re also getting clean and moving forward in a good fucking way. And I know that you’re trying this time, Klaus, because if you didn’t wanna be sober you would’ve already nabbed as much shit from Diego as you could and you’d be high right now!”  
Ben hadn’t noticed he was crying until he finished. It was a rare occurrence for him. He wasn’t even sure how it happened because he couldn’t actually feel it and it’s not like he had water in his body to cry out. He assumed it was like him, an apparition. It was as existent as his own form. Klaus must’ve noticed his tears because he had stopped moaning and was just looking up at Ben.  
”I'm sorry.” It was barely a whisper but Ben had heard. Klaus’ eyes were glistening with tears of his own and it seemed like he had finally listened to what Ben was saying. Ben could count on one hand the amount of times that had happened. He wasn’t sure if Klaus had ever apologized to him though. Sure he’s said sorry a million times, but he had never actually meant it. He sounded so broken, Ben thought he could hear his brother physically shatter. Why did things have to happen like this?  
”It’s okay. I love you, Klaus, you’re my brother. I care about you. I hope you believe that.”  
”I think I might.”

☏

Klaus thought he was dying. Actually, scratch that, he was dying. He was in the backseat of Diego’s car as they made their way to Diego’s friend Eudora’s. He couldn’t remember why Diego said they were leaving but it must’ve been important if he had to force Klaus out of the burrow of blankets he had made when he started shivering yet again.  
The sound and lights of the dinner time traffic were killing Klaus. His head felt like it had been split open on a sharp rock and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t drown out the noise around him. Now, on top of the screeching spectres, there were the sounds of sirens and honking cars and shitty brakes on buses. It was equally as painful to his aching brain just in a different way.  
Klaus couldn’t tell if Diego was driving too fast or too slow. His nausea was telling too fast but his need to be out of the car was internally screaming at Diego to step on it! He moaned again as he stuck his head back into the bucket he had brought to dry heave. He desperately wished he could eat just so something would come up. It was more painful this way, the bile that managed to resurface burning the back of his throat like he swallowed fire. He wasn’t sure he could take one more minute in Diego’s car when they came to an abrupt stop.  
”Y’okay Klaus? We’re here, ” Diego called to him as he willed his head to stop spinning for two seconds.  
”Yippee, ” Klaus exclaimed weakly.  
Diego got out of his seat and rushed to the side of his car to haul Klaus out. Klaus didn’t think he’d be able to stand at all so he was grateful when Diego opted to just carry him bridal-style out of the car. Luckily Eudora lived on the first floor of her apartment complex. Apparently there was no elevator. 

☏

Diego deposited Klaus on Patch’s couch as he followed her to the bathroom where she had started running Klaus a cool bath.  
”This should help with the fever. I don’t think I have anything but some Tylenol and cold medicine but you could check the kitchen.”  
”No that’s fine. I don’t think he’d want us to give him anything stronger right now considering this is the first time he’s tried to get clean outside of rehab like, ever.”  
”Shit, really?”  
”Yeah unless you lock him up it doesn’t happen.”  
”This is a big deal for him, then.”  
”Yep. I just wish it could’ve been under different circumstances.” Diego looked down in shame. If only he had been there for Klaus, maybe this never would’ve happened. Maybe he could’ve prevented this. He didn’t want to think about what ”this” is. Every time he did he thought he was gonna puke. As soon as Klaus was feeling better Diego was gonna kill the man that did this to his brother. It was what he deserved.  
A harsh cough from the living room snapped Diego from his thoughts. He ran out to Klaus.  
”You okay?”  
He was met with a whine as a response. He picked Klaus up again and brought him into the bathroom where Patch was sat on the floor next to the bath. It had just finished filling with cold water (though not too cold given that Klaus was still shivering) and on the ledge there was a bottle of water and a cloth. Diego quickly undressed Klaus and got him into the bath as soon as he was finished.  
As soon as Klaus’ body hit the water he let out a loud sigh and Diego was filled with relief.  
”Stay here, I’ll go get the medicine, ” Patch stated as she got up from the tile floor.  
Diego nodded as he took her spot next to Klaus. 

☏

Klaus watched as the clear bath water turned a pinkish colour as the blood from his skin seeped off. The cool water was refreshing and it began to dull some of the ache coming from his joints. He closed his eyes and despite the spirits that were still surrounding him, he felt calm. He always loved baths.  
He opened his eyes when he heard the door to the bathroom open. It was Eudora, and it looked like she had a bottle of something in her hands. Of course, he finally gets clean and now people are telling him to take drugs. Ridiculous!  
”Here, ” she offered a large gel pill in her hand, ” It’s Tylenol Cold & Flu. It should help with the fever and some of the pain.” She offered him water too but he swallowed it dry. He was rather experienced in taking pills dry so there was no point. Plus he wasn’t sure if he’d be able to keep the water down.  
Eudora sat on the toilet and watched Diego who watched Klaus. The look on Diego’s face made Klaus’ heart ache. He just looked so sad, and Klaus knew it was his fault. He wondered if it would've been better to just stay where he had been left. Not bother Diego with all this shit. Ben kept saying that they cared about Klaus, but wasn’t that the problem? He didn’t want Diego to care about him because it made it so much harder when he had to see Klaus fail over and over again. Diego had always cared too much. About everyone. God knows he would never do his whole Batman schtick otherwise. Their father had always made it out to be a weakness, which it was, but it was also his greatest strength and Klaus love that about his brother. Even when he sometimes wished he would just be apathetic like Luther. No wonder those two never got along.  
Klaus leaned back in the tub and shut his eyes again. This was the best he’d felt in weeks, which was hard to believe given the situation. Klaus figured most of his reasoning was just being in a bath, though, so it was fair. If he just blocked everything out he could pretend he was back at the Academy, the day before he left. He had taken a bath right after training that day, it being the only free time he had. He already knew he was leaving that night and he just wanted one last bath before he went. It was the only thing of comfort he’d ever had in the Academy aside from Ben, but of course, he didn’t exactly get left behind with the Academy.  
He had already packed his one non-Academy outfit and drugs into his bag, along with the money he had and some stuff he could pawn. He didn’t plan on coming back and he was sure he’d die before speaking to Reginald again. The old bastard probably wouldn’t even notice he was gone until Pogo mentioned it. He was always the biggest failure of the family. It wouldn’t even be a loss. For some reason, Klaus had found that strangely comforting. He could do anything and it wouldn’t even matter cause it wasn’t like he had an image to keep up like Luther or Allison. It was freeing in a way. And soon he’d be completely free. At least that's what he thought would happen when he left. Of course that wasn’t exactly what ended up happening.  
The drugs that started out as an escape quickly became a prison as he was pushed further into the depths of his addiction. And now here he was; sitting in a cold bath with stained water, going through withdrawal, naked and being observed by his brother and his friend, that he’s pretty sure is actually Diego’s ex-girlfriend. Oh how free he was feeling right now. 

☏

Diego thought Klaus might have fallen asleep. This was quickly proven wrong as he went to check Klaus’s temperature and the man jumped at the contact.  
”Jesus Diego, warn a guy!”  
”Sorry, I thought you were asleep.”  
”Oh, well no. I just got tired of your eyes boring into my soul, ya creep.” Diego blushed at that. He hadn’t realized he’d been staring but he definitely had.  
”Sorry. You feeling any better? Your temperature has gone down.”  
”Yeah, a lot actually. Soon I’ll be right back to normal!”  
”Oh I can’t wait, ” Diego stated dryly, ”You know how much I like it when you annoy the ever-loving shit out of me!” Despite the joke, Diego was actually happy his brother had gone back to his usually irritating ways. It was a clear sign that he was feeling better and no matter how much he claimed to hate it, Diego always missed the jabs and remarks his brother seemed to have at the ready.  
”You know it Di!”  
”Do you wanna get out of the bath now.” Patch piped up, ” Diego brought some clothes for you to change in.”  
”Yeah I’d better before I turn into an actual prune, ” Klaus spoke in agreement.  
Diego helped him out of the bath and wrapped a towel around his skinny body. He wasn’t sure if he’d ever get used to Klaus’ non-existent sense of shame when it came to his body. The man really couldn’t care less. Though this wasn’t a new thing, Diego couldn’t even remember how many times Klaus had paraded around the Academy with little to no clothes on. Of course he was punished every time for his behaviour but this never seemed to deter him from doing it again and again. The face Luther made must’ve been worth it to him. God knows it was to Diego.  
Him and Patch helped Klaus into the kitchen and sat him down at the table as Patch put on some tea for them. It was time to talk.


	3. Self Esteem Lower Than an Overweight 12-Year-Old with Acne

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eudora and Diego sat in front of Klaus with three cups of tea. Klaus took a small sip from his mug. Hm orange pekoe, he wondered if Diego had remembered that was his favourite.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW for some serious discussion of rape and drug abuse 
> 
> also more ben yay!

Eudora and Diego sat in front of Klaus with three cups of tea. Klaus took a small sip from his mug. Hm orange pekoe, he wondered if Diego had remembered that was his favourite.   
”So Klaus, ” Eudora started, ” I don’t know if you know but I’m a police officer. Me and Diego actually met in police academy.” Shit. He hated the police.   
”This sounds a lot like the start to an interrogation.”  
”Klaus, we just have some questions.”  
”Yeah we want to know what the fuck happened?” Always the calm one, Diego was.   
Klaus felt his mouth dry up. He’d been trying his best to forget what happened and he really didn’t want to think about it right now. But of course, things can never go his way can they?  
”Just tell them Klaus, they can help.” Of course Ben thinks this is a good idea. Diego will probably get all worked up and go out to ”defend his honour” which will just end up with the ghost of the guy following Diego around and taunting Klaus more. There is no fucking way he’s letting that happen.   
”I will tell you what happened, but Diego, you need to promise me something, okay.”  
”Okay, what is it?”  
”You can’t kill the guy.” Eudora looked at Diego expectantly. Klaus figured she was tired of him running around like Daredevil too.   
”Why not?”  
”Diego you’re really asking that question in front of a police officer?” Eudora scoffed at him and Klaus couldn’t quite suppress his laugh.   
”Okay I’m gonna explain something about my powers right now. So you need to listen.” Klaus wasn’t sure if he’d ever really talked about his powers to anyone before but might as well start now, right?  
Diego nodded his head  
”I’m sober right now. That means I can see ghosts like right now. The thing is I can’t shut them off. I always see them. I can’t make them go away. And they can talk, and they can scream, and they can cry, and they know my name.” Diego nodded again. ”The ghosts of people you kill follow you around, which means right now I can see every single one of the people you have killed.” Diego’s face dropped. He obviously had no clue that Klaus could see all of his ”victims”, if you could call them that, around him right now.   
”So if you go out and kill this guy, I will be able to see him every fucking time I see you, and I’ll never get rid of him. But, if you let her- ” he pointed to Eudora, ”handle this, I don’t have to fucking suffer and you can sleep easy knowing he’s unable to hurt anyone again. Okay?”  
Diego’s face looked conflicted but Klaus didn’t know why. Was he really acting like this was his choice to make right now? He can’t just play fucking God, especially when it ends up hurting people he thinks he’s saving. It’s just counterproductive at that point.   
Diego finally opened his mouth to speak. ”Okay.”

☏

Diego felt terrible. That look that Klaus mistook for contemplation was actually the look of Diego going back through his memories to think of all the different dickheads he’d killed that are all visible to Klaus right now. Klaus never talked about his powers. All Diego knew was that he could see ghosts sometimes and he couldn’t see them when he was high. How was he supposed to know that they were always there if Klaus refused to talk about his powers? Obviously Diego felt terrible for not having realized earlier but was it really his fault? Klaus never talked about that stuff. Though, they’d never asked either.   
Patch was looking at him with a disgusted look on her face. Clearly this was just going on the top of the pile for all the reasons she should hate Diego. Even if he thought that she didn’t really hate him, she definitely acted like she did whenever there were other people around.   
After they had processed what Klaus had said and Diego agreed, Patch started to ask questions. 

☏

”So Klaus, ” Eudora looked at Klaus with sadness in her eyes; she always dreaded having to ask sexual abuse victims about the crimes. You could always see that it brought them so much pain to have to remember. But she knew that it was important to keep men and women who committed those acts locked away. She reckoned Klaus probably understood that too, he didn’t seem like he wanted the person to get away with all the shit they’d done to him. So she continued. ”Could you tell me what happened to the best of your memory?”  
”Um…” Klaus looked uncomfortable, but she would stay here all night if he needed the time, ”I was starting to come down, I didn’t have anything on me so I knew I needed to get some money for new shit. I was still kinda high, y’know, so I was still a bit out of it.” He took a deep breath and tried too steady his shaking voice. From the corner of Eudora’s eyes she could see Diego start to cry again.   
”I was hangin’ around outside of this shitty bar. It’s North so… it wasn’t a very good place to be, but I go there all the time, y’know. That’s where I usually do ”business” at so I knew I could get money pretty quick. There’s usually some regs hangin’ around the place. That’s where you find most of that shit, on the strip downtown. Though you probably already know that, huh? It’s one of the places Diego doesn’t usually go to at night so I can avoid him. Sorry, bro.” Diego shrugged with a sad expression. ”And of course there’s dealers there, so I figured I was probably spending my night there. Alcohol, drugs, sex, everything I need!” Some tears slipped out as he softly sobbed before continuing. ”I always go there. I get money there before I get sober enough to feel like shit about what I’m doing, then I go to one of the dealers, get high, get drunk, rinse repeat.   
”That’s just what happens. Sometimes I go when I’m still super fucked up and I honestly don’t remember what happens those nights and I don’t want to. I recognize most of the people who come out back but last night there was a new guy. I figured I’d seen him before but I was just too high to actually remember him asking for business. Or he’d just gone to someone else. I didn’t realize he was actually new at the time. And even if he was I probably wouldn’t have given a fuck. Cause why would I?” He let out a harsh laugh and started sobbing again. Eudora reached out to take his hand but he flinched back when he felt the contact. She couldn’t even imagine what Klaus had gone through and she felt like shit for making him relive it again. Sometimes she hated being a police officer. She was taking notes so she could file a proper report the next day, knowing he wouldn’t come into the station. Every word she wrote made her heart break. She looked at Diego but she couldn’t read him whatsoever. He just looked straight in front of him at the door, not bothering to wipe the tears slowly creeping down his expressionless face. She wasn’t even sure if he knew he was crying.   
Klaus looked back up again. ”He offered me extra if I came with him. I figured that I might be able to get a place to sleep and some drugs out of it. Even if I didn’t, extra money was still good enough of an offer. I don’t work for a pimp like some of the girls that hang there so it wasn’t like anyone was gonna come looking if I didn’t come back. I could spend my money on however many drugs I wanted cause no one was taking my money. So money was more important than anything else cause drugs were more important than anything else. I don’t think I’ve eaten more than some pasta I found in a dumpster behind a restaurant in at least a week. I’m not even hungry for anything else other than some Oxy right now and that’s not fucking new. So of course I took the fucking offer. The next thing I knew… ” he laughed again, only resulting in more tears pouring down his face as his whole body shook, ”The next thing I knew he was beating me to fucking death on the tenth floor of a building on the East side. And he was having sex with me. With shit that really shouldn’t be put in a fucking human body!” He fully broke down at that and he just put his head down and sobbed. He curled in on himself on the chair and tried to hide as much as he could. It was shame. Eudora had spoken to enough survivors to know that the last thing Klaus wanted right now was for anyone to have to see him. She closed her notebook and dragged Diego out of the room to leave his brother by himself. Them being around him right now wasn’t helping anybody.   
Diego followed her but it didn’t seem like he had fully processed what he just heard. He was completely silent. And for once, she honestly had no fucking clue what he was feeling. That scared her. 

☏

Klaus just sat there crying. All he wanted in the entire world was to forget. To forget what had happened to him, to forget the man who did it, to forget why he went with him in the first place, to forget that Diego knew now, because he told him. He wished he didn’t. He felt so much worse. This was all his fault! And now he was dirty. So fucking dirty. Because he let him do it. It wasn’t like the guy was trying to prevent a fucking STD. He probably had AIDS by now. And no matter how hard he tried he couldn’t wash off the filth. He was covered in grime he could never wash off no matter how much he scrubbed. No one would ever want to touch him again. No one would ever want to look at him again. He curled in deeper on himself. He wanted to stop existing.   
”It's not your fault, Klaus.”  
”Yes it is, Ben! I went with him, this never would have fucking happened if I wasn’t such a fucking disappointment!”  
”Klaus, don’t say that.”  
”Why not? Because it’s true? I’m a fucking junkie whore who has fucking superpowers that he can't even use cause he’s too scared of ghosts! Dad fucking knew I was a disappointment, no wonder he gave up on me! I literally walked into the fucking situation so you can’t tell me this isn’t my fault!” He sobbed and Ben went silent. Klaus knew Ben knew he was right. This was his fault. It’s not like Diego or Allison would’ve gotten into this situation. Even if they did, at least they’d be able to get out of it.   
Klaus covered his ears to the screaming apparitions encircling him. It was all just too loud. His thoughts and the ghosts and Ben and the ticking of the fucking clock that he was gonna smash in a second if he couldn’t get some quiet. He just screamed instead. Cause if he couldn’t get any quiet, at least he could block out the rest of the sounds. 

☏

Diego wanted to kill the man who did this to Klaus. He wanted to kill him so fucking bad. Of course he knew he couldn’t or else the man would just continue to torment Klaus, even in death. But listening to what Klaus had said, and hearing him now, screaming at Ben that it was his fault; he wanted to kill that man. Diego barely had time to address the fact that Klaus was supposedly seeing and talking to their dead brother. He ”talked” to Ben all the time but Diego always assumed it was for attention, or some weird coping mechanism. He never actually considered the idea that Klaus – his brother who could speak to the dead – might actually be able to speak to one of the dead. He’d just have to add that to the list of “Things To Feel Terrible About – Klaus Edition”.  
The sobs that penetrated the walls of Patch’s spare room/office made Diego want to rip out his hair. Eudora just sat in a chair looking worried at the wall as if she could see his brother through it. Her eyes were glossy but tears were yet to fall. He wondered when he had started crying. He didn’t notice it until she handed him a tissue when they left Klaus. Judging by how wet his face and neck had been, it must’ve started a while ago. He was pretty sure this was the most he had ever cried in front of other people. In his entire lift.   
When they heard Klaus scream they rushed out of the room as quickly as physically possible. When they got to the kitchen they were met with a hysterical Klaus. He was curled up in a ball on the floor with his hands over his ears, whispering ”Please… Please Dad, let me out!” Diego’s blood ran cold at the mention of their father. He always said the same thing during nightmares. Was he having a nightmare? No he wasn’t sleeping. Why was he- oh. Fuck. Diego suddenly realized, they weren’t nightmares, they were flashbacks. Just like the ones he got from his ”private training sessions” with Reginald. Klaus’ must have been just as fucked up as his were.   
”He's having a flashback.”  
”Fuck.” Eudora changed her approach to calming him down.   
”Klaus, you’re in an apartment with me and Diego. You’re safe. Diego is right here. You’re Dad isn’t here. You’re safe.”  
It didn’t seem like Klaus could actually hear her, so ignoring better judgement, Diego shook his hysterical brother. He immediately jumped up and scurried back towards the wall, his hands falling from his ears momentarily. Diego took the opportunity to try to get Klaus back to the present.   
”Klaus, it’s Diego. You’re at my friend's apartment. You are not at the academy. Dad isn’t here. He can’t hurt you, you're safe.” Klaus slowly looked up at him, confusion apparent in his eyes.   
”Where am I?” His voice was so small it made Diego wanna cry.   
”We’re in my apartment, ” Patch answered gently, ”You just had a flashback, Diego said. Do you get those a lot?”  
”Um, I don’t know.”  
”Okay, well do you wanna get off the floor and get something to eat? You mentioned you haven’t eaten in a while and maybe it’ll take your mind off things for a bit.”  
”Okay, but I can’t promise not to puke it all back up right after.”  
”Still better than not trying to eat.”  
”Yeah I guess.”  
Diego watched Klaus slowly get up from the ground. He refused help, probably not wanting the contact right now. He was still sick and looked deadly pale, so Diego was happy he was gonna eat something. Was expired spaghetti really the only thing he ate for a week? God Diego hoped it wasn’t despite him knowing deep down it was. Why did Klaus not care about himself? It honestly hurt Diego knowing that if Klaus died, he probably wouldn’t have even been surprised with how he treats himself. Did he really think this was his fault? His self-esteem must be lower than an overweight 12-year-old with acne. 

☏

Ben watched as his brother struggled to eat soup. It was honestly one of the saddest things he had ever witnessed. After every couple spoonfuls he would gag and eventually he gave up, puking into the bucket he was clutching with his right arm. After that Diego cleared his dishes away, leaving just the glass of water. Ben sat on the counter behind Klaus watching the whole thing. Diego was sat across from Klaus at the table and Eudora had excused herself, leaving the brothers alone. Klaus still looked dead, fever or not, withdrawal is a bitch and Ben would bet money that Klaus probably wasn’t aware of anything happening outside of the pain and noise he was experiencing right now.   
Klaus had finally hit rock bottom. Huh. He must have because otherwise, just like Ben had told his brother, he would be high right now. Ben wished that rock bottom wasn’t a thing you had to hit before you changed. He wished that no one had to go through that type of pain just to want a better life for themselves. Or at least to decide to make that happen. Ben knew Klaus wasn’t happy with the life he had. He didn’t want the addictions, he didn’t want to have sex with dirty men and women just to afford to live, he didn’t want to be homeless or hungry. But Ben knew that Klaus thought even that life was better than the ghosts constantly haunting him, day and night. There was only one escape from the spirits, so he took it. And he took everything that came with it.   
Ben watched as Diego finally spoke to Klaus.   
”I’m sorry, Klaus.”  
”What?” Klaus seemed genuinely confused. You idiot, Ben couldn’t help but think.   
”I'm sorry. For what happened, and for the ghosts, and for whatever shit Dad did to you that gives you nightmares. I know I’m not the best brother, but I do care about you. And it fucking kills me to know that you have been keeping all this shit with you. You’ve been through horrible shit, but you were always the funniest of us. The brightest of us. The one who made everyone else smile. I don’t know how you did it, but I’m so fucking grateful you did.”  
Klaus looked at him shocked. Was this all really that hard for him to believe. Ben decided to say something.   
”He’s saying he loves you, Klaus. See, people fucking care about you!” Klaus smiled at that and Ben felt like he’d finally gotten through.  
”Thanks Diego. You’re the best fucking brother whether you realize it or not. And I wanna return the favour.” All three of them smiled bigger than they had in weeks. 

End of Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> . i just wanna say that my only reference for withdrawal is the withdrawal ive gone through for antidepressants and pain meds so im kinda just amplifying the symptoms i had since hes taking harder shit in this fic. both the withdrawals i went through were weaker than his would be but its my only personal experience with drug addiction and withdrawal from pills. also if theres anything you want to correct me on go ahead! please let me know if anything is inaccurate and ill do my best to correct it. follow my tumblr for updates @insertjohnmulanelyquotehere


	4. Waffles!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eudora came back into the kitchen after a while. It was around 9 pm and she was greeted with the two tired looking boys talking quietly. She assumed neither of them had much energy left from the past day as they both seemed to struggle to keep their heads up. Klaus noticed as she walked in and waved his right hand at her, she noticed it had a tattoo that said “ᕼEᒪᒪO“ on it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the short chapter folks, i wanted to get it up but i was having a bit of writers block. Next chapter will be longer and should be the last! as always im super grateful for all of the kudos and comments and follow my tumblr @robbiecasmin for updates on fics or to give me prompts :))

Eudora came back into the kitchen after a while. It was around 9 pm and she was greeted with the two tired looking boys talking quietly. She assumed neither of them had much energy left from the past day as they both seemed to struggle to keep their heads up. Klaus noticed as she walked in and waved his right hand at her, she noticed it had a tattoo that said “ᕼEᒪᒪO“ on it.   
“What’s up, Eudora?“ Klaus asked as Diego turned around to look at her.   
”Um… I hate to do this right now but I need to ask a few more questions about the man who…” she didn’t want to finish her sentence. He already knew who she meant anyways.   
”Oh yeah, sure go ahead. Sorry about earlier, I didn’t mean to go all crazy on you there.”  
”It’s okay, really. I just need a description and the location he took you to if you know.”  
”Oh.” Eudora saw his expression fall. He probably didn’t wanna have to think about the man anymore than he already was so it made sense why he looked uncomfortable.   
”He was white. He had a shaved head and he kinda looked like he could be a bouncer or something. He was tall and overweight. Taller than me so I dunno, 6’4” maybe.” He looked down at the notebook Eudora was using to copy down the information. He didn’t cry, he just looked angry. Rightfully so, she thinks. He finishes describing the man and his eyes look more and more distant as he relays the description. Diego grabs his hand at some point, to help ground him probably, and Eudora smiles a bit. He really cares about Klaus. It’s nice to see him softer. His eyes still look like he could start crying at any moment and Eudora wonders what was the last time he cried. He’d always bottled his shit up until he burst, the only difference was that usually the burst was him breaking out in anger and doing his whole vigilante thing as an excuse to stab someone without the guilt of having hurt someone who didn’t deserve it.   
She felt bad that he always felt the need to repress all of his emotions. They’re there for a reason and ignoring it only ends up making things worse. She knew about his childhood and some of the things his father did to them so it wasn’t surprising that he did push his actual feelings down, but she couldn’t say it didn’t make her feel a bit better to know he wasn’t just lashing out this time. He was showing vulnerability and in a weird way, Eudora was proud. 

☏

After Klaus had given Eudora the rest of the information she needed, he was led into a spare bedroom. Diego had fallen asleep on the couch as soon as he laid down so he got the bed. It felt nice laying in a bed, especially when he didn’t feel like he was going to die as much as before. The fever had settled down and the nausea was bearable at this point. He was still in rough shape but he’d felt worse. Eudora left the small room and he heard her walk down the hall into her’s. He felt pretty decent for the first time all day, and he was very, very tired. He left the lamp beside him on as he slunk into the soft blankets around him. He enveloped himself in the duvet and it was the most comfortable thing he’d laid on in his entire life. He couldn’t remember the last time he had laid in a bed that belonged to someone he could trust. Aside from Diego, there weren’t many people like that left.   
Ben sat in the corner on top of an old wooden chair.   
”I’m proud of you.” Ben looked at him with sincerity.   
”Why?”  
”Do you really need to ask that Klaus?” He shrugged. ”You’re getting clean for yourself, you’re talking to Diego, you’re letting people help you, you opened up about your powers. Dude I’m proud for everything you’ve don’t today, you’re actually trying. I know how fucking hard this is for you, I know that you’re trying as hard as you can right now to ignore your little ’fan club’, ” Ben gestured at the posse of ghosts starting at Klaus, ”But the fact that you haven’t given up, how could I not be proud?”  
Klaus looked at Ben with teary eyes. He wasn’t sure if anyone had ever told him they were proud of him. Disappointed was the only thing people ever felt towards him. Not that he blamed them, he was a failure. But it didn’t feel nice to be constantly reminded. So Ben telling him he was proud was just about enough to make him start weeping again. This time for a good reason, though. And he couldn’t stop smiling.   
”Thank you Ben. For that and for everything else you do for me. I know I’m the worst but I’m trying. I want you to know that.” And as he dozed off to sleep, he couldn’t get Ben’s smile out of his head. Because Ben did know. Of course he knew. He was his brother. 

☏

Diego woke up the next morning to the sounds of two people talking loudly. As he opens his eyes he’s met with the familiar sight of Patch’s living room as he remembers what he’s doing here. He identifies the voices as that of his brother Klaus and Patch herself. It smells like one of them is cooking and his suspicions are confirmed as he stumbles into the kitchen, yawning.   
”Hey look who’s up! How was your night sleeping beauty?”  
He groans at Klaus. It’s too early for this shit.   
”What time is it?” Diego already knew it had to be pretty early given that Patch hadn’t left for work yet, but he wasn’t sure exactly what time it would’ve been.   
”6:30 mon frére. Have a good sleep?”  
”Yeah, thanks, when did you wake up.” Patch looked at Klaus with a puzzled look on her face.   
”Yeah Klaus, you were up before me. What time did you go to sleep?”  
”Ah, you know, that doesn’t matter! All that matters is that I’m awake and you have a waffle maker!” Diego glanced down at the plate of waffles Klaus was holding. It was drenched in syrup and butter. It looked sickeningly sweet but Diego was just happy he was eating anything. Plus he definitely needed to put on some weight so he decided to eat his words.   
Patch sighed and gave Diego a look that said ’I’m too fucking tired for this shit’ and he knew exactly what she felt. ”Have fun with your waffles Klaus. I gotta head to work but you guys can stay here if you want.” She smiled and waved as she headed out the door.   
Diego sat down across from Klaus and watched curiously as Klaus practically inhaled his breakfast.   
”Jesus Klaus, slow down you’re gonna choke.”  
”No I won’t, ”he dismissed Diego as he went back to stuffing the food down his throat. ”I haven’t had waffles in sooooo long, I forgot how fucking good they tasted.” Diego laughed as Klaus finished his second. He wondered how long it’d been since his brother had eaten an actual meal. It made him sad to think about how that was even a question he wanted to ask and it made him even sadder to think about how Klaus probably wouldn’t even have an answer. He hoped that this time his brother would come home with him when he asked instead of just running out like he usually did. Why did it all have to turn out so fucked up. Why couldn’t things just be easy. He knew that some of this was Klaus’ fault, but it was also his own, and Vanya’s for that fucking book, and Allison’s for ditching them to become a movie star, and Luther’s for never being able to accept the version of their father the rest of them knew. But most of all, it was their father’s. Because Diego knew that Reginald was responsible for all of the nightmares and flashbacks and fear they faced daily. He was the reason none of them could ever have a truly normal life. No matter how much they wanted it.   
Diego looked up at Klaus and smiled when he saw his empty plate. It made him feel good to see that he was able to get through a full meal without puking all over the place again. Diego had no doubt in his mind he was still feeling like shit but it was nice to know he was feeling better.  
”How’re you feeling?”  
”Like someone ate my brain and puked it into my skull but other than that, I’m just peachy Di!”  
”Thank you for that visual. I can give you ibuprofen for your headache if you want.” Klaus nodded so he went to get it. 

End of Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> btw theyre gonna discuss the whole seeing ben thing next chapter. next chapter will also be the last chapter so if you want to give me prompts for a new fic or oneshot then hit me up on tumblr @robbiecasmin :)!!


	5. The End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the end :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey yall, so this took forever to finish lol. im sorry it took me so long to write this last chapter. its kinda short but i like the way it turned out and i hope u guys do too :) kudos and comments are always appreciated and i hope u liked this fic :))

Diego sat back down across from Klaus and handed him the pills. Klaus swallowed them and hoped they would kick in soon. His head felt like someone was drilling into it, courtesy of the ghosts from last night. He’d woken soon after falling asleep from a nightmare. This wasn’t anything new, of course. Most nights he woke at some point with his father’s sick face imprinted under his eyelids when ever he closed his eyes. He wasn’t used to doing it sober, though. His sleep was restless but it was better than nothing.   
Diego had a stern look on his face. It was the face he usually made before telling someone (Klaus) off. Klaus wasn’t really sure what he was mad about this time but he braced himself regardless.   
“Klaus I wanted to talk to you about something.” Shit. What did he do this time?  
“Okay…”  
“I’m completely serious about this so please don’t just brush me off.”  
A deep pit of anxiety was pooling in the bottom of Klaus’ stomach. What the fuck did he do? He wracked his brain but he couldn’t come up with anything.   
“Okay.”  
“I want you to move in with me.” Oh. He wasn’t sure what he was expecting but it wasn’t that.   
“Oh.”  
“Yeah… I mean, you’re getting clean and everything and I don’t want you back out on the streets. If you get a job we could get a bigger place and I could pick up more hours too. I just can’t see you like this again.”  
“Say yes, Klaus!” Ben was leaning over his shoulder with one of the biggest smiles he’d seen on his brother in a while. Klaus thought about it, and really, it was his best option. He had nowhere else to go and if he just went back out on the streets he’d relapse in no time. He looked at Ben with a question in his eyes and Ben nodded.  
“Okay.”  
“Okay?”  
“Yeah. I mean, what else can I do? I’ll move in.”

☏

Diego let out a breath he forgot he was holding. For once, Klaus would be safe. His brother would be safe. He smiled and started crying before he realized he had tears in his eyes. Klaus smiled back at him, looking slightly confused but happy nonetheless.   
“Can I hug you?”  
Klaus hesitated before nodding. Diego wrapped his arms around his brother and let a few more tears fall before wiping them away. He felt when Klaus started hugging him back and held on tighter as his body shook under Diego’s. When they pulled away Klaus sniffled and wiped his face on his arm.   
“I’m sorry, I just… I thought you were mad at me.”  
“Why would I be mad at you?”  
“I dunno, you were being all serious and you had that look on your face where your brow furrows and your left eye squints and I just thought you were angry at me for something.”  
“Klaus, I think this is the proudest I’ve ever been of you.”  
Klaus’ eyes lit up when he said that.   
“You mean that?”  
“Yes Klaus. I’m so fucking proud and I’m so fucking happy that I don’t have to be scared every time I answer the phone that it’s going to be someone asking me to identify your body. That I don’t have to worry you’ll ever call me at another payphone at 4am nearly dead. That I wont have Patch call me in because you were arrested again. You’re my brother, I love you, bro.”  
Klaus looked at him in disbelief. He looked on the edge of tears again, his eyes still red and puffy. “I’m sorry, Di.”  
“It’s okay. Now how bout we clean up and go home?”  
“Yeah, okay.”  
Diego cleaned Klaus’ dishes while Klaus stripped his bedsheets and put them in Patch’s washing machine. As they walked out the door to his car Diego felt okay for the first time in a long time. 

☏

Klaus felt the happiest he had since he could remember as he sat beside Diego in the passenger seat of his shitty car driving towards their place. Klaus knew that he wouldn’t always feel this good. There would be days where the cravings would be too much and he relapsed, and days where he couldn’t sleep without the memories of his past plaguing him. But right here, right now, he was finally content.   
“Hey Di,”  
“Yeah?”  
“Thank God for payphones.”

-End-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thats all folks! so this took like forever to write but im proud of it. its my first fic ever and the longest thing ive written :) if u like my writing i currently have two other fics im writing and both have the first chapters up already! i hoped u liked this story, leave a comment or kudos, theyre v much appreciated:))


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